Teacher mistakes hall pass for weapon, Bermudian schools lockdown

Schools go into 40 minute lockdown during false alarm

The Bermudian Springs schools went into lockdown for 40 minutes Thursday morning after a high school teacher mistook a hall pass for a weapon.

The high school contacted authorities at 10:20 a.m. after the teacher said she believed she saw a student walk past a classroom door brandishing what she believed to be a weapon, district Superintendent Shane Hotchkiss said.

"Unfortunately every teacher has their own hall pass," he said. "It was really how the student carried it. The student didn't do anything wrong, but it was enough to go into lockdown because we weren't sure what it was."

The school came out of its state of alert by 11 a.m. and Hotchkiss sent out an automated phone call to parents notifying them of the incident. Each student was also sent home with a letter of explanation.

After school let out, each faculty held a meeting to reflect on the effectiveness of their procedures. Hotchkiss said the incident re-enforced the need to keep classroom doors locked and closed at all times. He added that the staff would work to improve the speed at which they can safely clear a cafeteria, and find a way to alert students in loud environments, such as wood shop, who missed the emergency call.

"We are fortunate that it wasn't anything," he said. "Everyone handled it well and we had a positive response from law enforcement and staff."